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The next time winter rears its ugly head be ready with our fantastic Adult Snow Day game plan. Also this week we've got the story on "The Roommate" at Portland Stage, a Bar Guide review of Emilitsa, a Face the Music preview of a local Dolores O'Riordan tribute show, the debut of our new beer column Tap Lines, concert previews and so much more. Have at it!

About The Author

Aimsel Ponti

Aimsel Ponti is a Content Producer at MaineToday.com and a music writer for MaineToday.com and the Portland Press Herald.
She has been obsessed with - and inspired by - music since she listened to Monkees records borrowed from the town library when she was six years old. She bought her first Rolling Stones record at a flea market when she was in 7th grade and discovered David Bowie a year later. She's a HUGE fan of the local music scene and covers it along with national musical happenings in her "Face the Music" column and with artist interviews that appear in print in the Portland Press Herald and online at Mainetoday.com. You'll also find her out and about absorbing live music like a sponge and roaming around local record shops and flea markets. Aimsel is also the host of Music from 207 on 98.9 WCLZ and appears monthly on the WCHS TV show “207” to talk about...music of course.

10 must-see summer concerts for Mainers

Written by: Aimsel Ponti

From Portsmouth to Bangor with some spots in between, the season’s lineup of outdoor concerts, starting this weekend and going well into September, is dazzling. This week’s Face the Music is all about my picks for making this the best summer ever for live music . I’ll see you out at a show. And, no matter what the forecast says, always bring that hoodie, because you never know.

YONDER MOUNTAIN STRING BAND

7 p.m. Tuesday, June 27. Prescott Park, 105 Marcy St., Portsmouth, donations at the entrance for general admission; $39 to $55 table and/or
blanket reservation. presscottpark.orgThey're a magnificent explosion of acoustic bluegrass and rock from Nederland, Colorado. The five members of Yonder Mountain String Band are
all very good at what they do. You'll hear banjo, fiddle, mandolin and bass all played to the edge of reason. They've been at it for nearly 20 years
and know how to dazzle an audience with a ton of originals and, from what I discovered on YouTube, some sensational covers, including "Son of a
Preacher Man" and "Jolene."Photo courtesy of the artist

AIMEE MANN

7 p.m. Friday, June 30. Prescott Park, 105 Marcy St., Portsmouth, donations at the entrance for general admission; $39 to $55 for table or
blanket reservation. presscottpark.orgAimee Mann is a songwriting goddess with one of the most distinctive voices you'll ever hear. I've been a fan since her days in the new wave
band 'Til Tuesday. Mann's new album, "Mental Illness," is quite possibly her finest with songs like "Stuck in the Past," "Rollercoasters" and
"Simple Fix." And if she wants to bust out "He said shut up, he said shut up, oh god can't you keep it down? Voices carry," that's 100 percent fine
with me. One. Hundred. Percent.Photo by Sheryl Nields

Rod Stewart with Cyndi Lauper

7 p.m. Friday, July 14. Darling's Waterfront Pavilion, Bangor, $39.75 to $143. waterfrontconcerts.comI'll be honest, I'm not into Rod Stewart. The reason this show's on my list is because of the most unusual opening act. Of course, I mean
the one and only Cyndi Lauper. Ironically, "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" has always irritated me, but everything else I've heard from her is
fantastic, including "Money Changes Everything" and, of course, "Time After Time." Shebop your way up to Bangor for this one, and don't worry, it's
totally fine if you sing along with Stewart during "Maggie May"; it's a classic after all.Photo by Joel H. Garcia

Langhorne Slim & The Law

7:30 p.m. Saturday, July 8. Discovery Park at L.L. Bean, Freeport, free. llbean.comLanghorne Slim is an entirely new name to me. Turns out he's a singer-songwriter of the folk, soul and rock persuasions. He was born in
Langhorne, Pennsylvania, and borrowed his moniker from his hometown. His debut record is 2004's "Electric Love Letter," and several have followed,
most recently "The Spirit Moves" in 2015 and a live album released last year. I'm recommending this show in the spirit of taking a chance on someone
who you might now know but is worthy of your time. The song "Spirit Moves" is a foot-stomping three minutes of unfettered joy with some unexpected
horns that sound like they were flown in from south of the border. The album ends with the two-minute "Meet Again," a sweet love letter to the one
who got away. I dig this guy; he's worth dealing with the lawn chair spot-securing craziness of the L.L. Bean shows, and set among those tall pines,
his sound will be all the better.Photo courtesy of the artist

Elvis Costello & The Imposters

7 p.m. Monday, July 24. Thompson's Point, Portland, $45 general admission lawn in advance, $50 general admission lawn day of show, $75 seated in
advance, $80 seated day of show. statetheatreportland.comThis is another one of those shows that doesn't really need an explanation, but here are 10 just the same: "Alison," "Watching the
Detectives," "Accidents Will Happen," "(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes," "Radio, Radio," "Pump It Up," "Veronica," "Waiting for the End of the
World," "The Only Flame in Town" and "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding."Photo by James O'Mara

Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo

7 p.m. Wednesday, July 26. Maine State Pier, Commercial St., Portland, $25.75 to $79.75. waterfrontconcerts.comI've seen Pat Benatar three times over the past five years and believe me when I tell you, she and her guitarist, Neil "Spyder" Giraldo,
sure as heck can still bring it. Benatar ruled the charts in the '80s with songs like "Love is a Battlefield," "Heartbreaker," "Hit Me With Your
Best Shot," "Shadows of the Night" and "Hell Is For Children," among other classic gems. Expect to smile all night and definitely expect to sing
along. If she plays "Promises in the Dark," I'll be singing the loudest. She really is invincible.Photo courtesy of the artist

Phantogram with Tycho and Heathered Pearls

6 p.m. Wednesday, July 26. Thompson's Point, Portland, $35 in advance, $40 day of show. statetheatreportland.comThey're a Manhattan duo that formed a decade ago but that I just got hip to about a week ago. I threw my headphones and dove into the deep
end of their album called "Three," released last fall. They refer to their sounds as dream pop, electronic and trip-hop, and upon hearing the
album's opening track "Funeral Pyre," I concur. Phantogram is Joshua Carter and Sarah Barthel. They'll have a band with them and, from what I've
read, an impressive light and stage show.Photo by Timothy Saccenti

Alabama Shakes

7 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 5. Thompson's Point, Portland, $45 in advance, $50 day of show. statetheatreportland.comSinger Brittany Howard will knock your socks off and take your breath away, and she and her band pour through songs from 2015's brilliant
"Sound & Color" album, along with ones from their 2012 debut "Boys & Girls." Listening to this band is a downright spiritual experience with songs
like "This Feeling" and "Miss You." "Sound & Color" was the first song that many of us heard from Alabama Shakes, and the voyage of discovery of
each new one is pure, blues-tinged gold.Photo by Elliot Ross

Lyle Lovett and His Large Band

7 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 13. Savage Oakes Winery, 175 Barrett Hill Road, $70. savageoakeswinery.comLyle Lovett and a massive, crackerjack band behind him. Does this need any further explication? The guy's a force of nature, a storyteller
and a truly legendary performer whose been slinging his signature brand of Texas-born Americana, swing, jazz, folk, gospel and blues since the mid-
80s.Photo courtesy of the artist

The Ballroom Thieves

7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 2. Prescott Park, 105 Marcy St., Portsmouth, donations at the entrance for general admission; $39 to $55 for table or
blanket reservation. presscottpark.orgThis Boston trio will make you feel all the things with their to-die-for harmonies, emotionally dense lyrics and riveting live show. They're
the trio of Martin Earley, Calin Peters and Devin Mauch, and they create a world of sound you'll lose yourself in right from the start. I've seen
them live about four times and have walked out of every show feeling much better then when I walked in. Plus, Peters plays a cello, and you'll love
it.Photo courtesy of the artist